Gaudi goes into administration after sale

Sipp provider and fintech Gaudi Regulated Services has gone into administration on the same day the firm sold its pension business book to platform provider Platform One.

The FCA said directors of the Salisbury-based firm decided it was insolvent due to liabilities from outstanding Financial Ombudsman Service complaints.

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme is now investigating Gaudi to ascertain whether clients may have valid claims.

The FCA imposed asset restrictions on the firm in December.

Today the directors of Gaudi appointed Sean Bucknall and Andrew Watling of Quantuma Advisory as joint administrators. The administrators are insolvency practitioners.

Platform One has agreed to acquire and take over the £1bn-plus SIPP assets currently administered by the firm.

It has not been disclosed how much Platform One has paid for Gaudi or the amount of liabilities which caused Gaudi to go into administration.

Gaudi was hit with several upheld final decisions from the Financial Ombudsman Service on some of the investments it allowed within its SIPPs.

Gaudi’s board recognised the financial liabilities associated with these decisions and other potential Financial Ombudsman decisions. Having obtained the advice of insolvency practitioners the directors concluded that the firm was insolvent. Because of this the board decided to place the company into administration today at the same time as it sold its pension book.

At the end of December the FCA imposed a number of restrictions on Gaudi, including that it must not dispose of or transfer any assets without the prior written consent of the FCA. Gaudi was also stopped from making any capital distribution or paying dividends.

Gaudi’s business model was to operate pension schemes for other firms (a so-called ‘white-label’ model). The FCA says the business partners are not affected by Gaudi’s administration and because Gaudi’s pension business has been sold to Platform One the services they offer will stay the same. 

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) is now open to claims against Gaudi and will be investigating whether any claims meet their qualifying conditions for compensation. The FSCS has a page dedicated to Gaudi and will update this as investigations continue, it says.

Platform One will use its acquisition of Gaudi to launch its own on-platform SIPP and will rebrand Gaudi to Platform One, with staff moving over to the new combined firm.

Platform One is an FCA-authorised SIPP operator and will take over administration of Gaudi’s SIPPs. Consumers who hold a SIPP administered by Gaudi can continue to contribute, withdraw, and make investment decisions.  

Platform One is contacting consumers holding a SIPP administered by Gaudi. Platform One’s contact details are: Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; Phone number: 0345 366 5445.

The FCA has warned Gaudi customers to beware of scammers offering to help them, especially if they cold call. The FCA has pointed out that Gaudi customers do not need to use Claims Management Companies to submit a claim to the FSCS.

Customers can get in touch with the administrators Quantuma at Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; Phone number: 01202 970 430.